September 25
Activity of the day
Today is . . .
- Republic Day in Rwanda
On this day . . .
- Columbus sets sail from Cadiz, Spain, on his 2nd expedition (1493)
- Vasco Balboa becomes the first European to see the Pacific Ocean (1513)
- Greenwich Mean Time begins (1676)
- First American newspaper published (1690)
- The first blood transfusion using human blood takes place at Guy's Hospital in London (1818)
- Britain's first motor bus service starts (1897)
- Catalonia in Spain becomes autonomous (1932)
- The transatlantic telephone service is inaugurated (1956)
- 300 United States Army troops stand guard while nine black children are escorted to Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas (1957)
- The Partridge Family TV series is first broadcast (1970)
- A twelve-year-old boy wins a divorce from his biological parents
(1992)
Births
- William Faulkner, American novelist (1897)
- Mark Rothko, American painter (1903)
- Dmitri Shostakovich, Russian composer (1906)
- Glenn Gould, Canadian pianist (1932)
- Michael Douglas, American actor (1944)
- Christopher Reeve, American actor (1952)
- Mark Hamill, American actor (1952)
- Will Smith, American actor (1968)
- Catherine Zeta-Jones, Welsh actress (1969)
Deaths
- Samuel Butler, English writer (1680)
- Johann Strauss the Elder, Austrian composer (1849)
- Coco the Clown, Russian circus performer (1974)
- Walter Pidgeon, American film actor (1984)